Haas still not notified of 2015 Formula 1 entry

8 April, 2014

Gene Haas

NASCAR team boss Gene Haas has revealed that he is yet to be notified officially whether or not he will be admitted as Formula 1’s newest team owner in 2015.

In Bahrain at the weekend, Bernie Ecclestone confirmed that the NASCAR team co-owner’s entry will almost certainly be accepted, along with another new team believed to be headed by the former Force India and HRT chief Colin Kolles.

FIA president Jean Todt also confirmed the news, saying that it will be announced officially “in coming days”.

In the US, however, Haas said that Ecclestone and the FIA are yet to inform him.

“We haven’t been notified by the FIA, but Bernie is kind of half [of] Formula 1, so I’m sure what he says goes,” he is quoted by the Associated Press.

But Haas, who admitted he decided to enter Formula 1 to raise awareness of his highly successful tool machine business Haas Automation, admitted the delay in getting the 2015 entry approved is a worry.

“We needed to know about two months ago,” he said.

“If Mr Ecclestone says that we’re accepted and the FIA issues us some kind of notice in the next few weeks, then we can entertain 2015. But if we lose another month, I don’t think we could do it.”

Formula 1 supremo Ecclestone admitted he is not sure Haas will “turn up” in 2015.